


TDC Unlucky 13 2020

by Acin_Grayson



Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Blood and Injury, Cats, Dissociation, Fear gas, Gen, Ghosts, Identity Reveal, Jason Todd is Robin, Jason's Resurrection, Mild Language, On the Run, POV Outsider, Pre-Robin Tim Drake, Stalker Tim Drake, TDC Unlucky 13, TDC Unlucky 13 2020, Threats of Violence, Tim Drake Sees Ghosts, Tim Drake is Catlad | Stray, Tim Drake-centric, Witch Tim Drake, blood mention, gun mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:00:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 5,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27111580
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Acin_Grayson/pseuds/Acin_Grayson
Summary: 13 spooky prompts from the Trans DC discord
Comments: 34
Kudos: 98
Collections: TDC's Unlucky Thirteen





	1. Supernatural / Graveyard

**Author's Note:**

> tags:  
> Ghosts, Jason's resurrection, Tim Drake-centric, Tim Drake Sees Ghosts, Pre-Robin Tim Drake

Tim was woken by the feeling of watchful eyes on his back. It wasn't an unusual way to wake up, not for Tim.

He turned over sleepily to see who was vying for his attention today.

Martha Wayne stared back.

Mrs. Wayne was a frequent visitor, having lived next door, but she rarely woke Tim up. Tim got the feeling she thought he needed _more_ sleep. Which was ridiculous. Tim had things to do, after all.

"What is it, ma'am?"

Her pale face was frought with worry lines.

She gestured frantically for him to get up and follow her.

Tim scrambled out of bed. 

Mrs. Wayne had never looked so frightened, not even when her cemetery's black dog had gotten hurt fighting off some sort of monster.

What could possibly be going on?

Mrs. Wayne was waiting for him in the hallway. She blinked out of existence and reappeared father away, leading Tim down the hall and out into the backyard. Then onto the Wayne property.

She was joined by her husband, who looked even more distraught.

Together they urged him through the wooded area surrounding, and then into, the Wayne family cemetery. 

They lead him straight to the barely-settled grave of Jason Wayne.

Kneeling beside the grave is Catherine Todd, ghostly pale like all the occupants of the cemetery. She's clawing at the dirt ineffectually, like all ghosts unable to affect the living world.

Even though he knows he won't receive an answer, Tim whirls on the Wayne's and _demands._ "What's going on!?" Tim knows ghosts can't speak, but he's frustrated with the wild chase through the early morning dew and a storm is brewing. The rumble of thunder is covering most of the usual forest sounds.

Actually...

There were no forest sounds. 

No crickets, no birds, not even the rustle of small animals in the brush.

The thunder stopped and faintly, so faintly, Tim heard a _scream_ from deep within the earth.


	2. Cats / Blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cat-lad follows his cat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tags:   
> tim drake is catlad, tim drake is stray, cats, blood, mild language

Noodles was agitated, Tim couldn’t help but notice.

The gray and white cat was pacing the edge of the roof, chirping at him. 

Tim sighed, heavy and exaggerated, abandoning his post to follow her. (He can always get blackmail on Walker Inc’s CEO another night, the guy was certainly meeting with his mistress often enough.)

Noodles lead him across the gap to the neighboring roof, down the fire escape, nearly a block down the street, and into an alleyway. 

Turns out, Noodles was leading him to Robin.

A very injured, unconscious(?) Robin.

There was a lot of blood, actually, which was gross.

“Bird boy?” Tim approached quickly but with caution, stepping daintily around the dark puddle. “Rob?”

Robin groaned, shifting slightly. “Tim?” he mumbled, sounding unsure.

“ _ Stray _ ,” Tim emphasized, “but yeah, that’s me. How bad is it?” He didn’t bother beating around the bush. They both knew that just wasted precious time.

“Hurts.”

“Yeah, I’ll bet.” He knelt down, examining the source of the blood. It looked like a stab wound to the gut. “I’m gonna put pressure on this.”

Tim pulled gauze from one of his many belt pouches (they are not fanny packs,  _ Selina _ ) and applied a healthy amount of pressure with one hand. Robin whined a bit at the pain, but he’d have to suck it up.

“Have you called anyone?” he asked, checking for any other wounds. Oh look, there was a nasty gash on the Boy Wonder’s head.

“Comm’s busted.”

“I’m gonna call Cat, ok? See if she can contact the Bat.”

“Kay.” Robin listed a little to the side, clearly exhausted just from those few words.

The burner barely gets to three rings before Selina picks up.

“Kitten? Aren’t you on a job?” Thankfully she doesn’t sound tired, so Tim hasn't woken her up. He hears her gently scold Isis, quiet like she’s holding the phone at a distance.

“Got sidetracked. Can you contact Batman?”

“Sure, kitten. Can I ask why?”

Tim explained the situation, listed off the address, and Selina hung up in order to call Batman. He does hope he hasn’t worried her too much, Tim knows she thinks of the Robins as a little bit  _ hers _ as well.

“You still awake?” He nudged the vigilante lightly.

“Nn, yeah.”

“Keep talking, alright? You might have a concussion.”

“Mm, prob’bly.” Robin tries to sit up, only to clutch at his stomach. “Ow. Right. Forgot.”

“ _ Dumbass _ ,” Tim scolds. “Tell me about what happened? How’d you end up in a dirty alley with a stab wound? Very unsanitary, by the way. Terrible choice on your part.”

“Hah.” The older teen weakly pokes him. “I was fightin’ some ninjas.”

“Ninjas? Really?” 

“Yeah, League of Shadows.” He gestures incomprehensibly. “They were gonna kill the mayor.”

“ _ Why _ ?”

“Dunno, don’ care. Stopped ‘em.”

“Good job.”

“Th’nks. ‘M the best.”

“Sure thing.” The faint roar of the distant, probably speeding, Batmobile reached his ears over the din of the city. “Hear that? Batdad’s almost here.”

“Hah,  _ Batdad _ . Imma call ‘im that. See what he does.”

“You do that.”

It felt like ages later, but the Batmobile finally arrived. Out swept Batman and- oh look, that’s Nightwing too. Tim hadn’t known they were on speaking terms at the moment.

The two of them hustled into the alley, politely shoving Tim aside to administer their own, more experienced first aid.

Tim went to look for his cat instead of watching the proceedings. (Once his Emergency Brain turned off, blood made him a bit squeamish)

He found her on the roof.

Noodles watched him, with her soft green eyes, as he cleaned his hands of Robin’s blood.

He scratched her behind the ears as Nightwing gingerly carried his brother into the car, watched them speed away until he couldn’t hear the engine anymore.

“How’d you know he was here, pretty girl? Hm?”

Noodles merely blinked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not terribly spooky, sorry. But I hope you enjoyed nonetheless!
> 
> some notes  
> \- the cat is named noodles bc tim found her as a kitten in a takeout container  
> \- tim only takes her out with him when he's reasonably sure he can watch her (outdoor cats are not safe cats)  
> \- jason never dies in this au  
> \- selina emotionally adopted tim when she caught him stalking the bats about 2 years ago, though the drakes still have 'custody'  
> -


	3. Witch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim visits a favorite shop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tags:  
> Tim Drake, witch Tim Drake, AU - modern with magic

Tim walked into the shop, passing by the fancy crystals and shelves of instructional books.

He had plenty of those.

Tim made his way to the back of the shop, where the owner stood behind a counter. Their hair was dark and long, greying at the temples and done in a braid with various flowers. They wore a red shirt with the phrase ‘mage before beauty’ printed on it.

“Hey there, Tim! How are you today?”

“I’m doing great,” Tim smiled, genuine. Visiting Heather was always the highlight of his day. “How about you? Anything new?”

Heather launched into a story about a new customer with an overly complicated order, drawing Tim into conversation about his own work troubles.

Tim hadn’t had much time to do magic of his own lately, so shops like these were a lifesaver. Heatherbound in particular was a favorite of his. The shop technically specialized in leather bound notebooks, handmade by Heather themself, but they also sold custom spell bags.

Today, Tim was picking up a fresh protection spell. He’d be secretly slipping the bag into Jason’s jacket while the man was over for tea with Alfred this afternoon.

Jason was the only member of the family that didn’t patrol in a pair or group, so Tim had made it his mission to keep the man as safe as possible. In the past, he’d snuck in bags like this, as well as placing sigils of protection and good luck throughout the man’s safehouses. 

A few times, he’d even convinced a stronger spellcaster he knew and trusted to place wards on the safehouses that Jason used frequently.

The man was definitely aware that a member of the family was doing all this, but Tim was sure he thought it was Dick or Bruce.

(That was ok, though. Tim didn’t need or want the credit.)


	4. Ghosts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim is forced to consider what happens when ghosts get angry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tags  
> Tim Drake, ghosts, threats of violence

Tim once again woke to the feeling of being watched.

It was becoming normal, despite having started mere months ago.

(Three months ago, Tim fell down the stairs. Three months ago, for a very short while, Tim  _ died. _ )

In his home theatre stood a pale, somewhat translucent person. Tim didn't recognize them. 

Pushing down the mild, instinctual alarm at a stranger in his house, Tim examined the ghost.

In fine clothing, they towered over Tim as he sat up on the couch. They sported a long moustache and a flat cap. In their hand was a tall, straight cane.

"Hello," Tim greeted, because he was nothing if not polite to guests of the Drake estate. "Please wait a moment while I get the sheet."

Tim rose from the couch, folding his blanket, and hurried into the staff kitchen. Pinned to the fridge with a Flash magnet was a simple ouija board, printed from the home computer.

He had learned early that ghosts, for whatever reason, cannot speak. a ouija board was the simplest solution, seeing as ghosts couldn't manipulate Scrabble tiles either.

Tim hurried back to the guest and placed the paper on the table, alphabet facing the ghost. 

"You can spell out words to communicate with me," he explained, seeing as some ghosts had never heard of the spirit boards. "What can I help with?"

W-I-L-B-U-R-B-R-I-G-H-T-O-N

"Are you Wilbur?"

YES 

"Ok Wilbur, how can I help you?"

M-U-R-D-E-R

"You were murdered?" Tim clarified.

NO 

"I… I'm afraid I don't understand."

W-A-N-T-H-I-M-D-E-A-D

Tim's blood was ice.

He'd never dealt with a  _ violent _ ghost before. 

At seven years old, Tim knows a lot of things. He knows he's just a little boy, and he knows that his parents aren't home, and knows that people won't believe him if he says 'ghosts did it'. 

Could an angry enough ghost  _ do  _ things? Become a poltergeist? 

Tim didn't want to find out.

He took a deep breath, steeled himself, and looked the ghost in the eyes like he's supposed to.

"I don't think I can help you with that," Tim told Wilbur as politely as possible. "Is there anything else I can do?"

D-E-A-D, Wilbur spelled out more forcefully.

"I'm sorry, but I  _ can't _ do anything like that." He tried pleading again, a little desperately. "If there's nothing I can do to help you move on-"

Wilbur stepped through the table, expression  _ thunderous _ .

Tim  _ ran. _

He bolted out of the theater, down the hall, past all the ancient artifacts his parents had abandoned to the dust, and finally out onto the patio. 

Tim kept running.

He ran across the manicured lawn, past the garden, and into the wooded area at the back of the property. 

_ Surely _ the ghost wouldn't follow him here.

The air was hot and muggy despite the sun having gone down. Every breath clung like a film to the inside of his lungs.

Tim could hear nothing but his own panting breaths, but it wasn't like ghosts made  _ sound _ when they walked. Tim would have no way of knowing if Wilbur had followed him until- 

_ Pale, ghostly light- _

Tim  _ screeched, _ then burst into terrified sobbing. The boy curled against a tree, crying and pleading for Wilbur to  _ go away, please, I'm begging you.  _

Nothing happened.

It took what felt like hours, but the tears gave way to exhaustion and  _ still _ nothing had happened.

Tim dared to look up and flinched at the sight of a ghost, but this time it wasn’t Wilbur.

It was a medium sized person, wearing a long silky dress and a string of pearls around their neck. They had a soft, concerned expression.

This ghost didn’t try to scare him at all, just stood and waited for Tim himself to move.

Tim hesitantly waved. “Hello,” he whispered.

The ghost smiled, and waved back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's how Tim met Martha :)


	5. Urban Legend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Social media discovers something new roaming Gotham's streets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tags:  
> Tim Drake, POV outsider, social media
> 
> related to my work: _for once, the brick-thrower isn't steph_ but reading is not necessary  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/23068393

**GOTHAM HAS A NEW CRYPTID?**

_BUZZFOOD article by Felicity Sullivan_

Every city has its claim to fame. New York has rats of unusual size, Chicago has crocodiles in the sewers, Gotham- Gotham _also_ has a crocodile in the sewers, but he's _real_ so he doesn't count.

Gotham has had many urban legends, myths, and tales to its name. Most, however strange, have turned out true. 

Crocodile-man? His criminal record is on the internet. Court of Owls? Secretive cults are old news. And, most infamously, _Batman_? Once impossible to prove, now publicly a member of the Justice League. 

However, dear readers, I have the new Gotham cryptid for you‐ behold!

[Image Description: A shot of a smoggy sky at night, with a blurred black shape in the bottom left corner. It appears to have batlike wings, but not much else is clear.]

_Posted to Tumblr by @onlyingothamite on March 4th 20XX_

Captioned:

"The sky beast! I'm pretty sure it was a dragon but until we get better pics I'm calling it #GothamSkybeast

Sky-beast indeed! 

  
  


~

**COMMENTS**

_Gotham Bro_

pretty sure that's just a crappy shot of batman

_TREES please_

Def a pic of Batman's cape

_Amelia Blessing_

R u sure it's not a bird

_Asdf Watcher_

Idk you guys I've seen something flying around down by the docks and I'm pretty sure bats and his birds cant fly

_Walker Trellis_

Gotham's bs gives REAL cryptid hunters a bad rap

  
  
  


~

  
  


**BURGLARY STOPPED BY MYSTERIOUS BEAST**

Article by William K

A creature of unknown origin stopped a burglary occurring at Lowery's Jewellery around 4am on Saturday morning. The now-arrested thieves say they first thought it was Batman swooping down to stop them, but quickly realized how wrong they were. One would-be burglar described it as “like a panther, but with the wingspan of a bus.”

CCTV cameras picked up the creature twice-

Subscribe To Read More

  
  


~

  
  


**OnlyInGothamite**

I TOLD YOU IT WAS REAL #SkyBeast

  
  
  


[Several screenshots of tweets below]

**rainbow emoji** _@letmebelesbian_

yo what is on my roof? #onlyingotham #cryptids

[Image ID: A picture taken from below of a brick wall, with a window between the viewer and the top.. Over the lip of the wall hangs something thin and black, dangling flat against the wall and becoming thinner towards the curled end.]

  
  


**Hello, Gotham** _@newbiegothamite_

is this normal??? #helpmeout #

[Image ID: a short video of a dark shape walking along the edge of a flat rooftop, across the street from the camera. The shape is too large to be a standard human, and appears to have a long, tapering tail.]

  
  


**mothman's PR people** _@cryptidwho_

No joke I just saw something fly out of an alleyway??? #OnlyInGotham #wtf

End images]

  
  


~

  
  


In his bedroom, on his laptop, Tim Drake saves another post.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is rushed, and terrible, and i apologize


	6. Pumpkins / Return From The Dead

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce stands outside in a storm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tags:  
> Bruce wayne, tim drake, **mild dissociation**
> 
> This one is a continuation of the first!

Another sleepless night had passed, leaving Bruce to wander the early October morning in a daze.

There was dew on the grass, and the trailing legs of his too-large sweatpants were soaked. Bruce was watching the sun rise, trying to feel something other than overwhelming numbness. 

Before him was the garden, painstakingly kept up by Alfred even as Gotham’s early cold snaps killed the summer flowers.

The pumpkins were still growing, though, orange as they were. He and Jason were going to carve pumpkins. They’d done it last year and Jason had a blast.

Thunder rumbled, as it had been for the last hour or so. A storm had been brewing over Gotham proper, creeping slowly towards Bristol. The first drops of it fell around him.

Clouds slowly obscured the rising sun but still he remained.

The rain pelted his face, mingling with the tears, and the wind howled around him, echoing his grief. 

He stayed that way for a long, long time.

Eventually, minutes or hours later, he couldn’t be sure, there was a break in the wind. It was just enough that he heard the tail end of a shout.

Turning, Bruce saw a small figure bolting towards him out of the forest.

The child was pale enough that Bruce briefly thought him a ghost, before he took the man’s hand in his own and began dragging him away.

Bruce drifted, listless, behind this frantic boy. He couldn’t hear a word over the storm, even though it looked like the boy was shouting at him.

What was this boy doing out in such weather?

He couldn’t bring himself to care, until he realized where they were going.

He stopped, the boy’s hand jerking out of his own, as he realized this section of trees surrounded the Wayne family cemetery.

Where Jason was buried.

Bruce couldn’t take another step.

He hadn’t visited the remains of his son since the funeral. Couldn’t force himself to go, not through the overwhelming guilt.

That guilt was like a wall, like a thousand tons of concrete burying him where he stood.

The boy put all his weight into one hard yank, and Bruce lurched forward again. His body followed this child into the forest.

Distantly, Bruce wondered what the boy was doing on the Wayne property.

He considered again that this was some sort of spirit or illusion, here to lure him to a torturous end. 

It seemed so real. The dark hair slicked down by rain, clothes soaked and clinging to his thin frame, arms covered in mud up past the elbow.

Those thoughts fled when they reached the clearing.

Amidst the gravestones was a faltering figure; clearly young, clearly injured. 

Bruce moved under his own power once again.

He rushed past the smaller boy, lunging to catch the injured child as they fell. 

“It’s ok,” he reassured, even if he was drowned out by the storm. “It’s ok, you’re safe.”

He gathered the child in his arms, catching the eye of the smaller one and gesturing for him to follow.

As he ran for the safety of home, he very carefully didn't think about the last time he carried a broken body in his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is mostly sad and not spooky, but we all know what's going on here.
> 
> i think??? this is my first time writing like, _real_ angst??
> 
> tell me how i did


	7. Fear Gas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't move."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tags:  
> tim drake, jason todd, fear gas, gun mention, blood mention
> 
> enjoy!

“Don’t move.”

Tim hasn’t done more than breathe or blink in at least four minutes. His legs are cramping a bit, being stuck in a half-crouch, but he doesn’t do more than whisper “okay.”

Five and a half feet in front of him stood his brother, hands stock-still around the grip of his gun.

Jason had lost his helmet at some point earlier in the night, and the domino mask had been ripped off. His face was bleeding in a couple spots, where the adhesive had claimed skin.

His eyes glowed green.

_ Fuck Scarecrow,  _ Tim thinks. _ Fuck fear gas, too. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> its a drabble! 100 words exact!   
> been a while since i banged one of these out.


	8. Hunted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are consequences to being a vigilante.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tags:  
> tim drake, identity reveal, on the run

His feet pound the pavement, panting breaths fogging up the cool night air.

Tim knows he can’t run forever, he’s already running on empty, but where can he hide?

He can’t go to any member of the family, not without putting  _ them  _ in danger, too.

He’s far enough ahead, he  _ should  _ be able to duck into that alleyway-

A dead end.

He’s grateful he knows Gotham’s streets so well, or he’d have been cornered long before now. He’s in Park Row, though. Out of his wheelhouse, typically, but the only place that didn’t currently have mobsters staked out on every corner.

“Hey there, little bird,” one of the thugs taunts as he rounds the corner. “Or should I say,  _ Timmy _ ?”

It’s been two days since the news broke, since he was unmasked, and there’s not a soul in Gotham that doesn’t know who he is.

All the planning, all the careful misdirection, the outright  _ lies _ . 

_ Worthless _ .

He can't go to any of his safehouses, Tim Drake is connected to all of them, even if peripherally. The smart villains will have people waiting for him there. At least on the streets he has the advantage of unpredictability.

For now, though, nowhere is safe. He’s been caught off guard by low-level thugs, of all people. No doubt looking to cash in on one of the many, many bounties on his head.

If nothing else, being outed means he no longer has to keep up the appearance of a helpless rich boy. 

  
Tim smiles ferally at his pursuers, then proceeds to  _ kick ass _ .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not as long as i'd have liked, but i'm happy i think
> 
> i hope you enjoyed!
> 
> take care of yourselves! unclench your jaw, drink some water! <3


	9. Skeletons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tim Drake in a universe where he never became Robin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tags:  
> tim drake, jason todd (mentioned), stalker tim drake,

Tim pinned another photo to the board.

His target had been elusive, but Tim’s investigative skills are better.

Jason Todd.

His death had  _ devastated  _ Tim, left him adrift in an uncertain world. Sure, Grayson was still around, but Tim’s focus had thoroughly shifted by then.

Lucky for Tim, the older boy eventually returned. A miracle! (Tim had his theories.)

Tim wonders how much Jason  _ knows  _ about The Incident.

It’s public knowledge that the Joker had been killed by a would-be victim, a clear case of self defense, but the ‘victim’ had disappeared before they could be identified.

Tim grinned, thinking about it.

Convincing that monster he was _brainwashed_ (of _all things_ ) had been easy, it was getting him to turn his back that had been the issue.

But Tim had done it! He’d succeeded where Batman failed and avenged his fallen Robin.

But of course, no one could know.

Tim Drake is a man of many secrets.

We've  _ all  _ got skeletons in our closets, don’t we?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> is this disjointed? idk
> 
> this is like three hours past yesterday so, sorry. might expand on this sometime though. lmk what you think!
> 
> take care of yourselves!


	10. Spell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two knights have a spar, only to be interrupted by a dragon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tags:  
> jason todd, bruce wayne, tim drake, alternate universe- fantasy

The knights turned on each other, each with their hands on the hilt of their weapons.

With a cry, the knight in red surged forward. Swinging his dual swords, he aimed high.

The knight in black ducks, swinging his poleaxe in return.

Neither lands their blow.

The two went at it like this, dodging forward and back, for nearly ten minutes. 

They were both taken by surprise by the snarling dragon that appeared at the mouth of the cave behind them.

The great creature reared back its head, teeth bared ferociously.

“If you two mess up my spellcasting again, I swear to the gods I’ll  _ eat you _ .”

Both knights lowered their swords, the red raising his hands in surrender.

“Apologies, Timothy.”

“Yeah, sorry, Tim.”

The dragon harrumphed, shaking his head.

“What’re you spelling today anyway?” Jason asked, before his brother could retreat back into the cave.

“Myself,” the youngest of them replied nonchalantly.

“ _ What _ ,” the knights chorused.

“Well, we still can’t go anywhere because I look like… this,” he nods to his enormous form. His scales gleam black, almost iridescent in the evening light. “So I’m looking into appearance spells.”

“Smart,” Bruce said.

“Yeah! We can’t un-transform you, so we can at least make you  _ look  _ human again. ”

“Exactly,” Tim gave them a toothy grin. “I found one that might work.”

“Don't hold out on the details, little brother! Tell us how it works!”

“Well-”

Bruce smiled, watching his sons talk animatedly. 

Their family was enduring hardships, surely, but never before had these two been so close.


	11. Vampires and Werewolves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Damian encounters something new while in search of his father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tags:  
> damian wayne, bruce wayne, dick and jason mentioned, alternate universe - werewolves, alternate universe - vampires

Damian al Ghul had been travelling for weeks, in search of his father’s domain. Mother had said it was near the decrepit city of Gotham, but the city was large, and the area surrounding even larger.

Searching was tedious, and full of obstacles. Mostly in the form of other vampiric domains.

Trekking through the snow, he hoped the one he’d just entered was correct. The wards had been powerful, but easy to bypass. An incongruence that hopefully meant it was keyed to his father’s magical signature, which Damian's own should share frequencies with.

Suddenly he was rushed by a grey blur from the trees.

Damian threw a knife at the blur, then retreated while his opponent was hopefully dazed or surprised.

He jumped his way up to a high branch in a coniferous tree and looked down.

The creature was beautiful, enormous with thick, grey fur, a bristly tail, and pointed ears. Its eyes were quite intelligent. 

The beast didn't  _ look _ like it could climb trees, thankfully, but bears hadn't either and Damian had learned that lesson quickly.

The boy kept a watchful eye, and noticed quickly when the creature was joined by another of its kind, this one white like snow instead of a mix of greys.

Both looked to him, making a mix of growls and short barks at each other. 

The grey one- which he’d injured -suddenly took off into the forest, leaving it’s partner to stare at him from the ground.

(Turns out they probably can’t climb trees.)

Damian was slightly remorseful about injuring the grey beast. It was likely only defending its territory when it had jumped at him.

Why his father allowed such large, clearly predatory animals to roam so close to his domain was a mystery.

He watched the white beast from his perch in the tree.

Green eyes, almost luminescent in the moonlight, watched him back.

They remained at a stalemate for a long while, likely ten to twenty minutes, before the grey beast returned. This time accompanied by a human- no, a vampire.

Perhaps this could be…

“Hello there, little one,” the large man called up. “My friends here say you’ve wandered into our territory. May I ask what’s brought you so far out from the city?”

"I am here to meet someone!" Damian calls down.

"And who is that?" the man asks.

"Bruce Wayne," he answers.

"You're in luck," the man says, "because I'm Bruce Wayne."

Damian is quiet for a moment, drinking in the sight of his father.

"I would like to come down, now."

"If you'd like to jump, I'll catch you," his father offers. But damian knows this trick.

"I can descend myself. However…" He hesitates. "Is it safe, with them? The white one behaved aggressively earlier."

"He was startled. You hurt his brother, and you're a stranger in his territory. He'll behave now." Father places his hands on the white creature's head and scratches it behind the ears.

Damian descends the tree swiftly, hoping to impress his father with his agility and strength.

He stays close to the tree, when he reaches the bottom, not wanting to approach the two animals quite yet.

"What… are they?"

Father looks surprised. 

"You've never seen a werewolf before?"

" _ What? _ " Damian blinks, disbelieving. "Surely  _ these  _ can't be werewolves. I was told weres are savage, mangy monsters with no self control. Not…  _ them _ ." Damian gestures to the two, eyes still wide with wonder.

Father frowns severely, and Damian stands rigid. He doesn't know what he's done wrong, but he won't provoke further response if unnecessary. 

“Who told you that? To speak of my sons that way is  _ unacceptable _ .”

_ Sons,  _ Damian thought,  _ which means I have contenders for my rightful place as heir. _

“My grandfather,” Damian answers in a neutral voice.

“And who is he, to speak ill of my boys?”

“The Demon’s Head, Ra’s al Ghul.”

Father rears back, seemingly out of shock. “No,” he breathes. “She said… Who is your mother?” The man steps closer, demanding.

Damian will not deny him the knowledge, he answers. "Talia al Ghul."

“She said she lost the baby,” his father  _ growls _ .

Damian… had not known that.

He knew his father was unaware of his existence, but for mother to have lied… 

Well, she must have had a reason.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> theres about 300 words of Jasons POV that i scrapped and im Big Sad abt it
> 
> anyway heres some notes on this AU  
> -no capes  
> -the wolves are Dick (grey wolf, blue eyes) and Jason (white wolf, green eyes)  
> -Bruce, Damian, Alfred, and Cass are vampires  
> -Dick, Jay, Tim, and Steph are wolves  
> -Duke is some kind of seelie fae i think  
> -Bruce is Pack Head, despite not being a wolf himself, which leads to some interesting dynamics in the family  
> -wolves in this verse are just Big Intelligent Wolves, not anthropomorphic horror movie monsters  
> -vampires have inherent magic, which has a signature unique to an individual. this is useful for wards and magical locks.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed!


	12. Trick-or-Treating / Gotham

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Damian informs him that he'll be trick or treating this year. Dick is pleasantly surprised by his costume choice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tags:  
> Dick Grayson, Damian Wayne, Halloween

"Grayson! Where are you, you imbecile?"

"Right here, Dames, no need to shout."

Dick popped his head out through the doorway of Bruce's office. He'd been digging through the files on the man's home computer for cute photos of the family. (He _knows_ Bruce has some.)

"Grayson I wish to… ugh. I require your assistance."

Dick blinks. "With what lil D?"

The 13 year old sighed heavily. "I wish to engage in 'trick or treating' this year."

"Really? Are you sure? Last year you said-"

"I _still_ have no use for the pointless sugar!" The boy interrupted. Then, more subdued. "Kent, however, has challenged me to a contest of collection. Whoever gathers more candy wins."

"Ah. I see." Damian never could resist a challenge. "Is this a sheer volume thing, or is there a certain point value to different candies?"

"Point values, of course." The boy launches into a lengthy explanation of what candy is worth the most, versus the least.

Meanwhile, Dick is giddy with the knowledge that he'll _finally_ get to finally take one of his siblings trick-or-treating.

-

"Damian? Buddy, we're gonna be late!"

It's only very early afternoon, but Dick is driving the boy out to the suburbs. For safety's sake. (Thankfully Gotham has enough vigilantes that Nightwing and Robin won't be missed tonight. It's going to be busy, but giving Damian an average childhood experience outweighs any concerns Bruce might've had.)

"I'm coming, Grayson, have some patience."

Dick is struck dumb by the boy at the top of the stairs.

Or rather, what he was wearing.

"Well, are we going?" Damian asked, having descended the stairs while Dick was relearning how to breathe.

"Is that… a Nightwing costume?"

It was high quality, and so accurate that I was likely handmade. He made a note to thank Alfred later.

"Good to see you aren't _blind._ Yes, obviously it is."

Dick very carefully didn't say any of the things he thought in response because he knew Damian would take offense to literally all of them. (Namely, _awww!_ )

From the scathing look on Damian's face, he could tell anyway.

"Kent is wearing a copy of that _clone's_ outfit, claiming he's 'the coolest'. I desired to prove that Gotham's heroes are far cooler. Wearing my own uniform would be tacky, so I chose the least worst of the rest of our team."

Dick's face felt like it was going to _melt off_ , he was smiling so hard.

"I'll prove to Kent that this is the _superior_ costume choice." Damian continued, already heading for the front door. "After all, Nightwing is the superior hero."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by this fic:  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/27288487


	13. Free Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the Batcave's shadows are just a touch more ominous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tags:   
> Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne, creepy

"Dick," Bruce says that first night when he was nine. He's using the same _ listen to me, this is important  _ tone that he did when explaining that no one can know about Batman. "You must never,  _ ever  _ go where I haven't put up lights, alright?" 

Dick nods, of course. He's nine, and small, and terrified of the dark. 

A year later, though, and the boy finds himself drifting at the edges of the lit halls. Robin has much bigger things to be frightened of than shadows, after all. 

"Dick" Bruce shouts, not far away, and he whirls around to face the man with too-wide eyes. 

"I wasn't gonna!" he denies, knowing even as he says it that he's not going to be believed. 

It does not occur to him to notice that he doesn’t remember walking this far into the passageway.

"What have I said," Bruce scolds in low tones, as he grips Dick's shoulder and near drags him towards the well-lit main cavern, "about the caves, young man." 

It is not a question, and his mentor is not expecting an answer. He's grounded from the Cave (and, subsequently, patrol) for a week. 

When the guilt of disobedience wears off, he realizes there was real, honest fear in Bruce's voice. 

Dick dreams that night, of the Cave's shadows and of the feeling of eyes on his back. He dreams of clawed hands reaching out and grabbing, pulling,  _ tearing- _

He does not leave the safety of the lights again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DID IT!!!!!!!! All 13 days!!!!
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed reading these! I had a blast writing them <3
> 
> BLANKET PERMISSION  
> So a lot of you have commented along the lines of wanting to see more from these AUs. As of right now, aside from the Tim Sees Ghosts bits, I don't have concrete plans to continue them. Not saying I never will, but for now I'm not feeling it. That said, I'm giving you guys permission to take these ideas and _run with them._ If you have a clue on how to continue or expand on something in here? _Do it._ I _dare_ you.


End file.
